Thomas Farese
Thomas "Tom Mix" and "Mr. T" Farese (born 1943) is the reputed capo, consigliere of the New York, Colombo Crime Family. He lives and operates in South Florida. Criminal Career Farese started out as a small-time hood from Boston, with a string of arrests dating back to the early 1960s. But by the mid-1970s, he was one of Fort Lauderdale's most prosperous dope-smuggling mafioso. In 1973, Farese was charged with possessing a stolen painting and convicted of interstate transportation of forged securities.He served the last 10 months of a 10-year sentence at a prison camp in Pensacola where he befriended the late Nicholas Forlano, a made member of the Colombo family and one of New York's biggest loansharks. Membership into the Colombo Family After their respective releases in 1974, Forlano and Farese settled in South Florida where Farese hatched a far-reaching criminal enterprise under the legitimate cover of the Olympic Corp. Farese ran the show from a tiny office atop the Bridge Restaurant at 3200 E. Oakland Park Blvd. Olympic ran two Broward restaurants and nightclubs, a realty firm, a charter aviation service, three ocean-going shipping lines, two banks in the Cayman Islands, a coin-machine company and a movie production company. Farese was such a good earner that in July 1978 he earned his ``button'' (Mafia term for initiation as a ``made man'' with certain protections and privileges in the Colombo family). 1980 Indictment In 1980, Farese was indicted for large-scale marijuana smuggling and other criminal enterprises. He was sentenced to 30 years in prison. Shortly after his release from prison in 1994, he became the target of another federal investigation. 1998 Indictment Undercover Drug Enforcement Administration agents posing as crack dealers told co-defendant Frank DeRosa they needed to launder more than $1 million in street level sales. DeRosa, 70, manager-operator of Club Pink Pussycat in Hialeah, was enlisted to launder lots of small denomination bills to larger ones for easier transport back to Colombia. DeRosa, who was forced to cede ownership of the club to his wife after a 1990 tax-evasion conviction, introduced the undercover drug dealers to Farese. Farese started his own strip club management operation with his daughter, son in law, and loyal associates operating out of Goldfinger, 3801 N. University Drive, Sunrise, and Club Diamonds, 1000 N. Congress Ave., West Palm Beach, his 1980 conviction precluded him from obtaining a state liquor license, but not from managing them. Farese and De Rosa orchestrated the Purchase and sale of Club Diamonds, to William Bennett of Boston (nephew of infamous Wimpy Bennett). Money from Mr. Bennett, purchase of the club and renovation costs was used in Farese's dealings. Between April and November 1995, undercover DEA agents delivered $1,157,080 in purported drug money to Farese associates in 12 separate exchanges. They started small, but eventually worked their way up to $200,000 apiece. Along the way, the mobsters collected more than $95,000 in commissions. And federal agents collected thousands of hours of incriminating though highly edited wiretaps on strip joint, home and cellular phones detailing Farese's leadership and supervision of the money laundering operation. Farese, alluding to his smuggling days, bragged to the undercover agents about his own Colombian connections. They also discussed laundering larger sums through South Florida check-cashing stores and strip clubs, Italian marble sales and ventures in Guatemala, Switzerland and New Jersey Becoming Consigliere and 2012 Indictment In 2011 Farese became Consigliere when the previous consigliere, Richard Fusco (Richie Nerves) was imprisoned. In January 6, 2012 Farese and alleged associate Pat Truglio were arrested on money laundering charges in South Florida based on evidence collected by capo Reynold Maragni who secretly acted as an informant. On December 1, 2012, Farese was acquitted of money laundering. The case was severely hobbled by the absence of two mob rats who secretly recorded the key evidence, but were kept off the witness stand because they had been engaging in misconduct while working as informants. References http://articles.sun-sentinel.com/1998-05-19/news/9805190006_1_thomas-farese-laundering-colombo http://nypost.com/2012/01/06/feds-bust-colombo-big-for-money-laundering-2/ http://www.nydailynews.com/new-york/mob-men-walk-free-stunning-verdicts-article-1.1211428 Category:Colombo Crime Family Category:Colombo Capos Category:Colombo Consigliere